When the email arrived a few months ago, we almost ignored it. We had been recommended to a national organization to facilitate their strategic planning process, but it took us several email exchanges (and a bit of work on Google) to find out who the organization was. (And who referred us, and why!)

As with most of our out-of-left-field inquiries, this one has turned into a center field client.

We start our strategic planning work with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys – also known as The Academy, or Quad A – with a two day trip to Washington for a bit of project planning later in July. But the real work will come later in the summer as we move into our “discovery phase” of work and spend time talking to staff and attorney members of the Academy. We hope to cap off that phase of work by flying a large handful of Academy staff, board and other key stakeholders to Richmond for a strategic session – after the UCI bike races pedal out of town in September.

Having worked with attorney groups before once or twice, we’ve steeled ourselves for battles over punctuation, and maybe an over-the-top performance on my part. (“You’re the Bill of Rights organization! Your brand is the defenders of the Fifth Amendment!” I recall shouting at one meeting with a legal organization…)

Mostly, however, we’re excited to work with another organization interested in hammering out the most effective approach to serving its members – and the thousands of families seeking support as they seek to grow.